Beef cutting method and system

ABSTRACT

A system for processing a suspended beef carcass as the carcass is moved along a defined path. A robotic arm is carried on a moveable table and has mounted thereon a servo motor-driven band saw capable of effecting a splitting operation on the beef carcass. The band saw is counterbalanced by a mass having a weight less than the weight of the band saw, and the robotic arm has a maximum load-carrying capacity less than the weight of the band saw. A torque monitor for the servo motor detects breaks in the band saw or breaks in the support for the band saw. A vision-based sensor system detects location of a tail bone on the beef carcass and identifies an age-indicating indicia. The system includes a controller in communication with the carcass rail, the carcass processing device and motor, and the vision-based sensor system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates in general to systems and methods for splittingbeef and other animal carcasses used in livestock/slaughterhouseoperations.

2. Description of Related Art

Beef carcasses are cleaned and opened to remove internal components, andthen split down the center of the spine or backbone into two sides,which are subsequently further processed into meat cuts. Meat processingfacilities operate on beef carcasses that continuously move along anoverhead carcass rail. Each carcass is suspended, typically from itshind legs, from a pair of trolleys that ride along the overhead carcassrail or track. The trolleys are driven by a chain so that each carcassmoves past each processing station at a speed set by the chain.Carcasses are separated into two separate groupings identifiable by astamp design/age-indicating indicia provided on the carcass—a first typeof stamp particular to the industry denotes an animal that was overthirty months in age (hereinafter “OTM” cattle), while a second type ofstamp denotes an animal that was under thirty months in age (hereinafter“UTM” cattle). Sanitizing/sterilization requirements in the industrydiffer when processing OTM cattle as compared to UTM cattle, thusbringing a need to properly identify each carcass and proceed with therequired sanitization procedure. It is the splitting of the beef carcassdown the backbone to which the systems and methods of the presentinvention are particularly directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Bearing in mind the problems and deficiencies of the prior art, it istherefore an object of the present invention to provide a beef splittingmethod and system whereby a robot-based carcass processing deviceimproves the accuracy and efficiency of the carcass splitting operation.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method andsystem for splitting beef carcasses that detects the tail bone locationon a supported beef carcass and automatically moves the splitting saw tothat location before commencing the split.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method andsystem for splitting animal carcasses using a robot-based carcassprocessing device with a robotic arm that has a maximum load-carryingcapacity less than the weight of the splitting saw.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for splitting beef carcasses using a band saw, without the use ofa support on the side of the carcass opposite the processing device.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for splitting animal carcasses that can detect breakage of thesplitting saw, and control further action of the system.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for splitting animal carcasses that can detect breakage of thesupport for the carcass, and control further action of the system.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method andsystem for identifying whether an animal carcass is OTM or UTM using avision-based sensor, and executing a sanitation procedure on arobot-based carcass processing device particular to such identification.

Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part beobvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.

The above and other objects, which will be apparent to those skilled inthe art, are achieved in the present invention which is directed to amethod of processing a suspended beef carcass as the carcass is movedalong a defined path. The method provides a carcass rail, a first beefcarcass, a robot-based carcass processing device, a vision-based sensorsystem, a sanitation location, and a controller. The carcass rail has aplurality of trolleys spaced at desired intervals and is moveable alongthe carcass rail, each trolley capable of supporting a beef carcass. Thefirst beef carcass is supported by the carcass trolley, and has a tailbone disposed at an upper end of the carcass, as well as indiciadisposed on the carcass indicating age of the carcass. The robot-basedcarcass processing device has a robotic arm on which is mounted asplitting saw capable of effecting a splitting operation on a beefcarcass, the robot-based carcass processing device being disposedadjacent the carcass rail. The vision-based sensor system detectsage-indicating indicia on the beef carcass as the beef carcass moves onthe carcass rail to a position adjacent the robot-based carcassprocessing device. The sanitation location executes a sanitationprocedure on the splitting saw. The controller is in communication withthe carcass rail, carcass processing device, and vision-based sensorsystem. The method includes the steps of moving the supported beefcarcass on the carcass rail to a position adjacent the robot-basedcarcass processing device. Then, the vision-based sensor system detectsthe age-indicating indicia locations on the supported beef carcass asthe supported beef carcass moves along the carcass rail. A signal issent to the controller with information of the age-indicating indicia ofthe supported beef carcass moving along the carcass rail. The controllersends a signal to the robot-based carcass processing device to move thecarcass splitting saw to the sanitation location, based on theinformation of the age-indicating indicia. Following a sanitationprocedure on the splitting saw, the splitting saw is moved to the firstor a subsequent supported beef carcass as the supported beef carcassmoves along the carcass rail.

In an embodiment, a plurality of age-indicating indicia are disposedanywhere on the supported beef carcass. The method may further includeexecuting the sanitation procedure on the splitting saw at thesanitation location prior to or after commencing the split cut, thesanitation procedure being dependent on the age-indicating indiciaidentified by the vision-based sensor system. The age-indicating indiciamay indicate whether the beef carcass is an OTM or a UTM beef carcass.The sanitation location may be a wash cabinet. The sanitation proceduremay be executed by at least one spray nozzle disposed on the splittingsaw. The age-indicating indicia may comprise a stamp having a patternthereon and the controller is capable of executing a pattern recognitionprocedure to identify the age of the beef carcass. The method mayfurther include detecting locations of the tail bone and expressing thelocation in coordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z locations).

In another aspect, the present invention is directed to a system forprocessing a suspended beef carcass as the carcass is moved along adefined path, the beef carcass having at least one age-indicatingindicia disposed anywhere on the carcass. The system comprises arobot-based carcass processing device, a vision-based sensor system, anda controller. The robot-based carcass processing device has a roboticarm on which is mounted a splitting saw capable of effecting a splittingoperation on the beef carcass, the robot-based carcass processing devicebeing disposed adjacent the beef carcass. The vision-based sensor is fordetecting location of and identifying at least one age-indicatingindicia on the beef carcass. The controller is in communication with therobot-based carcass processing device and the vision-based sensorsystem, the controller being capable of receiving the identifiedage-indicating indicia on the beef carcass from the vision-based sensor,sending a signal from the controller to the robot-based carcassprocessing device to execute a sanitation procedure dependent on theage-indicating indicia identified, commencing the sanitation procedureon the robot-based carcass processing device, and executing thesplitting operation on the beef carcass.

In an embodiment, the system further includes a sanitation location forexecuting the sanitation procedure after the age-indicating indicia isidentified by the vision-based sensor system. The controller may be incommunication with the sanitation device. The age-indicating indicia mayalso indicate whether the beef carcass is an OTM or a UTM beef carcass.The sanitation location may be a wash cabinet for receiving thesplitting saw, or the sanitation procedure may be executed by at leastone spray nozzle disposed on the splitting saw.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features of the invention believed to be novel and the elementscharacteristic of the invention are set forth with particularity in theappended claims. The figures are for illustration purposes only and arenot drawn to scale. The invention itself, however, both as toorganization and method of operation, may best be understood byreference to the detailed description which follows taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a processing station embodiment of thepresent invention in which a robot station has a band saw on a roboticarm for splitting a beef carcass.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a processing station embodiment of FIG.1 in which a robot station having the carcass splitting band saw on therobotic arm is supported by a saw trolley on a saw rail and positionedadjacent a carcass trolley on a carcass rail supporting the beefcarcass.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of a series of beef carcassessupported by trolleys on a carcass rail, to be processed by a processingstation of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the carcass rail and acarcass trolley employed in connection with the processing station ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a chain follower mechanism fordetermining speed and position of a beef carcass on the carcass railemployed in connection with the processing station of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view showing the travel of a beef carcass along acarcass rail from a first position to a second position, wherein therobotic arm and saw of the processing station of FIG. 1 follow thecarcass and begin to move downward to split the carcass, without therobotic arm moving horizontally relative to the base, and from thesecond position to a third position, wherein the base of the processingstation ceases horizontal movement relative to the carcass and therobotic arm synchronously moves horizontally relative to the base alongwith the carcass while the robotic arm and saw continue to move downwardto complete splitting of the carcass.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view showing the travel of a beef carcass along acarcass rail, wherein the robotic arm and saw of the processing stationof FIG. 6 is inserted into a wash cabinet for sterilization prior toaligning itself with the traveling carcass to commence the splittingoperation of the carcass exemplified in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a front elevational view of a suspended beef carcass havingstamps/age-indicating indicia meant for identifying the type of cattlebeing processed.

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of the suspended beef carcass of FIG.8 with the stamps/age-indicating indicia being identified in a Cartesianplane by a vision-based sensor.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT(S)

In describing the embodiment(s) of the present invention, reference willbe made herein to FIGS. 1-9 of the drawings in which like numerals referto like features of the invention.

Robot station 50 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is part of the processingstation used to process the carcasses individually and sequentially asthey pass by in a line suspended along carcass rail 90. An articulatingrobotic arm 52 is mounted on the robot station and is capable ofeffecting smooth and continuous movement of one or more beef processingtools or devices, such as saw arm 72, band saw 74. The robot stationincludes a base 54 set on four legs and mounted in a stationary positionon a table 30 moveable along rails 32, which are elevated above groundlevel on stand 34. Rails 32 are spaced from and parallel to the path ofthe conveyor carrying the trolleys supporting the beef carcass(described further below). On the base is a turntable joint 56 able toswing the robotic arm 52 mounted thereon around a vertical Y-axis tovarious angular positions. Lower joint 58 mounted on turntable 56 is atthe lower end of lower arm segment or link 60 and rotates link 60 abouta horizontal axis. At the upper end of link 60 is an upper joint 62 ableto rotate upper arm segment or link 66 about a horizontal L-axis.Between link 66 and the proximate end of upper joint 62 is roll joint 64able to rotate link 66 about its longitudinal axis. A bend joint 68 atthe distal end of link 66 is able to rotate saw arm 72, saw 74 about anaxis normal or perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of link 66. Twistjoint 70 is disposed between bend joint 68 and saw arm 72, and rotatesthe saw arm about an axis normal to the axis of rotation of bend joint68. Servo or other types of electric motors are attached to and driveeach of these joints.

The robotic arm 52 of the system is able to process the beef carcasswhile it is suspended and moving on conveyor line 90 by cutting it withthe blade 75 of band saw 74 mounted on the end of the arm. The conveyor90 is positioned adjacent the robotic arm 52 carrying thecarcass-processing device, e.g., the band saw, and, optionally, asupport on the opposite side of the carcass (not shown). The Cartesiancoordinate space in the vicinity of the carcass and robotic arm isdefined by the X-, Y- and Z-axes as shown in FIG. 1 and other drawingfigures. The term “extend” or “extension” unless otherwise specifiedmeans to move generally in the Z-direction toward the conveyor and/orthe carcass hanging, while the term “retract” or “retraction” unlessotherwise specified means to move in the Z-direction generally away fromthe conveyor and/or carcass. All movement of the components describedherein may be controlled by the controller 80, either on the individualprocessing station and trolleys, or remotely located and linked by wireor wirelessly to one or more processing stations and trolleys, and areeffected using conventional actuators, drivers, motors, sensors and thelike, unless otherwise specified.

The construction of an embodiment of the carcass-supporting trolley isshown in more detail in FIGS. 3 and 4, where carcass trolleys 92, 92 a,b, c, d, e, f may ride along the upper edge of carcass rail 90. Trolleys92 and the suspended carcass are moved along by force of a pusher member91 which bears against the upper end of each trolley, and which isitself moved by a conveyor drive chain 95 operating at the desired speedof processing of the carcasses.

Suspended beef carcasses 20, 20 a, b, c to be split are shown hanging byhind feet 22 from hooks at the lower ends trolleys 92, 92 a, b, c, d, e,f. The backbone or spine is shown in dotted line extending from the tailbone 23 at the base of the spine or backbone, at the upper end of thecarcass. The beef carcass has a back side and a front side that is cutopen (also in dotted lines) with the head and internal organs removedprior to splitting of the beef carcass. The beef carcass is supported onthe carcass trolleys with the back side facing toward the robot station50 and the front side facing away from the robot station. The X-axislocation of the carcass may be tracked, for example, by a positionencoder monitoring the overhead conveyor speed and position relative tothe X-axis. The position encoder may be coupled to the gearbox that isdriving the chain, and sends a signal corresponding to the movement ofchain 95 and, correspondingly, the trolleys and carcasses.Alternatively, a chain follower mechanism as shown in FIG. 5 may beemployed that engages mechanically into the side of chain 95 withplastic sprockets 94 which are attached to shafts 96. Two sprockets maybe coupled together with a timing belt 97, with each sprocket having askip tooth which allows the pusher member to pass by while the othersprocket maintains engagement into the side of the chain. The encoder 98is attached to the sprocket shaft. The position encoder is incommunication with controller 80, so that the position information ofthe carcass may be used by the controller to adjust the speed of therobot arm and band saw 74 on moving table 30, so that it moves alongsidethe carcass on the conveyor through the entire downward splitting cut.

FIG. 2 shows robot station 50 having a robotic arm assembly 52, andcarcass 20 moving in direction 45 in front of the robotic arm. Roboticarm 52 also includes at its distal end a carriage having saw arm 72which carries a band saw 74 to saw the spine in two halves vertically.In the embodiment shown, band saw 74 is also partially supported bycable 105 and a counterbalancing mechanism, which will be describedfurther below. The plane of the saw blade 75 during cutting of thecarcass is perpendicular to the direction of carcass movement 45 oncarcass rail 90. Robotic arm 52 further has mounted on it a servo motor78 that drives band saw 74. A monitor 86 is included with servo motor 78and/or controller 80. The system of the present invention further mayemploy such monitor 86 as a torque monitor used for monitoring torque ofthe servo motor during splitting of the supported beef carcass, bymonitoring the current to the servo motor driving saw blade 75. Thecurrent torque demand is monitored by a system variable that getsupdated every servo interrupt, for example, at a rate of about 2000int./sec. If there is a break in the bad saw blade during cuttingthrough the beef carcass, there will be a significant decrease incurrent to the servo motor and torque output. If the algorithm formonitor 86 detects a change in torque of the servo motor duringsplitting of the supported beef carcass that indicates a break in theband saw during splitting of the supported beef carcass, e.g., bydetecting a substantial decrease in servo motor current, controller 80is programmed to modify operation of the robotic arm to take action tominimize and/or prevent further damage to the equipment, as will bedescribed further below.

In the event that cable 105 breaks during cutting, more force will beapplied to upper arm segment 66, supported by upper joint 62 andcarrying the band saw blade. Consequently there will be a significantincrease in torque on the servo motor(s) supporting and driving upperarm segment or link 66, and an increase in current to the motor(s). Thesystem of the present invention also provides via monitor 86 themonitoring and detection of a break in a support for the splitting sawduring splitting of the supported beef carcass, and modifying operationof the robotic arm. If the algorithm for the monitor 86 detects a changein torque of the servo motor driving joint 62 of supporting arm 66during splitting of the supported beef carcass that indicates a break inthe supporting cable, e.g., by detecting a substantial increase in servomotor current, controller 80 is likewise programmed to take action tominimize and/or prevent further damage to the equipment (describedbelow).

As shown in FIG. 2, the processing station includes a pair of saw rails100 on which ride a saw trolley 102 supporting band saw 74 by cable 105.The saw trolley moves along the saw rail in a Z-direction normal to theX-direction of the carcass trolleys 92 along conveyor 90. The band sawsupported by the saw trolley is counterbalanced by mass 106 connected tothe band saw by cable 105 passing through an overhead block.Counterweight mass 106 has a weight less than the weight of the band sawto permit up or down movement of the saw by a force less than the weightof the splitting saw. Mass 106 moves with band saw 74 toward and awayfrom the beef carcass by operation of robotic arm 52. During splittingand other movement of the band saw, the load on the robotic arm does notexceed the weight of the splitting saw. The counterbalance for the bandsaw permits the robotic arm 52 to be designed and constructed with alower load-carrying capacity than the weight of the band saw itself. Forexample, a 95 kilogram band saw may be employed on a robotic arm thathas only a 50 kilogram load-carrying capacity. This permits a smallerand less costly robot station to be employed, without losingeffectiveness and performance in splitting the beef carcasses. A smallerarm also allows for a much smaller footprint of the robot station.

The robotic controller 80 drives the arm and provides multiple axisinterpolation for moving the carcass processing tool in Cartesiancoordinate space by controlling the multiple axes of the robotic arm.The robotic controller also provides control for linear axes to drivetable 30 so that the beef carcass on the carcass rail and the processingtool on the table both can be moved synchronously. The controller(s)employed in the present invention are described further below.

Table 30 supporting base 54 of robotic processing station 50 may be on alinear axis driven set of rollers on its own rails 32 as the carcassmoves along the carcass rail. The drivers for table 30 are controlled bycontroller 80. The linear axes allow the robotic controller to move thetable horizontally in the X-direction with the motion of the carcassrail. To reduce the footprint of the system of the present invention, itmay employ a combination of the horizontal travel of robotic processingstation 50 on the rails 32 (which axis is referred to as the U axis) andthe Cartesian Xp axis movement capability of the robotic arm 52 toaccomplish the total relative horizontal movement of the saw needed asthe carcass moves along its rail. As shown in FIG. 6, a portion, forexample, approximately half, of the travel of saw 74 may be accomplishedwith the U axis, wherein robotic processing station 50 moves on rails 32with the carcass 20′ from position 1, and the saw travels downward inthe Y-direction only relative to base 54 on table 30 as it followscarcass 20′ to position 2, and makes no horizontal X-direction movementrelative to the base. The remaining portion of the horizontal travel ofsaw 74, for example, the other half, is accomplished by movement of saw74 along Xp axis relative to base 54 on table 30 from position 2, whileit is simultaneously continuing to move downward in the Yp direction asit follows carcass 20′ to position 3. Other combinations may be used.The saw 74 will track the carcass initially with the U axis and then,when it approaches the maximum travel of that axis (position 2), table30 motion in the X-direction will stop and movement of the saw willtransition over to lateral movement with the Xp axis capability of therobotic arm 52 as link 60 (shown in phantom lines) rotates on base 56 tofollow carcass 20′.

The combined synchronous vertical (Yp), horizontal (Xp) andextended/retracted (Zp) travel of the various links 60, 66, 70 andjoints 56, 58, 62, 64, 68 of robotic arm 52 and saw 74 relative to thecarcass as it moves continuously on the line to position 3 may beaccomplished by use of a controller 80 capable of moving the carcassprocessing tool in Cartesian space via inverse kinematics and havinginterpolation control over the multiple axes of the robotic arm, asdescribed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2017-0049116-A1, the disclosureof which is hereby incorporated herein. Controller 80 converts theCartesian coordinates of the tail bone location of the supported beefcarcass moving along the carcass rail into coordinates usable by therobot-based carcass processing device. These latter coordinates includedirectional axes for the robotic arm, Xp, Yp and Zp, and rotational axesfor the robotic arm Ap (roll), which revolves around the X-axis, Bp(pitch), which revolves around the Y-axis and Cp (yaw), which revolvesaround the Z-axis.

A dual robot may also be used on one platform, with the combined traveldescribed herein.

As a beef carcass 20′ is moved on trolleys 92, 92 a, b, c, d, e, f to apositon adjacent robot station 50, controller 80 causes table 30 and therobot station base 54 on the table to commence movement alongside thecarcass on carcass rail 90 as they move continuously in direction 45. Inthe starting position 1 (FIG. 6), saw 74 on the end of robotic arm 52 isinitially located vertically near their uppermost positions andhorizontally close to the point where the carcasses first enter thecutting area surrounded by the protective fencing (FIG. 2). As saw 74begins its vertically downward cut stroke, the saw at the end of therobotic arm 52 moves horizontally on table 30 along guide track 32 inthe X-direction 45 at the same speed as carcass 20′ along rail 90.

During splitting of the supported beef carcass, if monitor 86 detects achange in current and torque of the servo motor that indicates a breakin the band saw, controller 80 then causes the servo motor to shut downand/or robotic arm 52 to cease further downward (Y-direction) movementof the band saw through the carcass. The controller may be programmed tothen simultaneously stop further movement of the beef carcasses on thetrolleys 92 along the conveyor 90 and further movement of table 30(X-direction). At that point the robotic arm may then withdraw the bandsaw in the Z- and/or Y-directions and extract the broken saw blade fromthe carcass. In the case of a change in current and torque of the servomotor that indicates a break of the supporting cable, the controller maybe programmed to take the action described for the band saw break, ormay be programmed to continue the downward movement of the saw throughthe beef carcass and complete the splitting cut, and subsequently movethe saw to a safe location out of the path of the beef carcasses movingalong the conveyor, disable the processing station and/or signal a faultindicator.

When the backbone has been fully split, the saw motion downward in theY-direction has been completed. Subsequently, the robotic arm 52 withsaw 74 will move away from the carcass (Z-direction) and table 30 willdrive horizontally (X-direction) opposite direction 45 and the roboticarm 52 will drive saw 74 upward (Y-direction) into the starting positionto engage the carcass, and the operation will be repeated.

When cutting or otherwise processing the beef carcasses, it may not benecessary to provide a support to have the carcass supported on the sideopposite the carcass processing tool. It is desirable that the forces ofthe carcass processing tool do not move the carcass out of a knownposition during the processing, particularly cutting a backbone orspine. The robotic arm 52 may impart downward forces such that thesupported carcass is contacted only by the band saw as it is beingsplit, without being moved horizontally away from robotic station 50 torequire a support on the opposite side. If opposing support is provided,the operation of the individual opposing support station may be the sameas that described for the back station in the instant applicant's U.S.Pat. No. 6,126,536 entitled “Automated Saw for Splitting Carcasses”issued on Oct. 3, 2000 and/or published PCT application WO 2014/036547A1 entitled “Carcass Stabilizer” published on Mar. 6, 2014, thedisclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

The controller of the present invention determines the position inCartesian space of the robotic arm and tracking of the saw during theentire cut sequence, initially as the saw extends toward the carcass inthe Z-direction, then as the backbone cut is made from the top of thecarcass down to the bottom in the Y-direction, and finally as the sawretracts away from the carcass in the Z-direction. All saw movementsoccur as the saw and table follow the carcass moving in the X-directionhorizontally on the carcass rail. Each robotic arm is made up of rigidsegments or links connected by joints. The desired extension, endmovement of the saw vertically downward along the backbone andretraction requires the computation of the dynamic change of the roboticarm joint angles to maintain the desired saw position. Successfulimplementation of such joint motion control also requires that the linkand joint elements of the robotic arm move within their permissiblephysical limits. The load on the robotic arm does not exceed the weightof the splitting saw during all movement of the splitting saw. Thecontroller may employ any known method of modeling and solving suchmotion problems.

The control provided by the robotic controller allows multiple axes ofthe robotic arm to move the processing tool in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z,A, B, C axes). The simultaneous control of movement of the table onwhich is mounted robotic arm 52 (on the back side of the beef carcass)ensures that they can be moved synchronously with the motion of thecarcass along the rail during the entire processing operation.

As shown in the example herein, the robotic arm 52 has six (6) axes ofcontrol for the arm and a seventh axis for controlling a circular sawmotor, when the invention is implemented in a carcass splitting system.The six robotic arm axes in the drawings are the rotary axes S (swingjoint 56), L (lower joint 58), U (upper joint 62), R (roll joint 64), B(bend joint 68) and T (twist joint 70). The motion of these robotic armaxes are then converted into Cartesian coordinates through the motionalgorithms by the processor in the controller. These Cartesiancoordinates are expressed as directional axes for the robotic arm, Xp,Yp and Zp, and rotational axes for the robotic arm Ap (roll), whichrevolves around the X-axis), Bp (pitch), which revolves around theY-axis and Cp (yaw), which revolves around the Z-axis.

During the sequence of carcass splitting as described above, thecontroller therefore employs control to move the robot joints tomaintain saw 74 in a constant vertical orientation and maintaining theplane of band saw blade 75 perpendicular to the direction of carcassmovement 45 as the saw extends to make contact with the carcassbackbone, move downward in the Yp direction to split the backbone,retract from the carcass in the Zp direction and begin the sequenceagain, all while moving horizontally with the carcass and then reversinghorizontal movement for the subsequent carcass. The method of splittingthe beef carcass using the band saw may be completed without using asupport on the opposite side of the carcass, so that the carcasssupported by the trolley is contacted only by the band saw as it isbeing split thereby.

The present invention may also employ a vision-based sensor systemutilizing a video or other camera, for example, a stereoscopic 3D camera88 (FIG. 2) mounted above the robot station and beef carcass. Thestereoscopic 3D vision system embodiment shown employs two cameras orframe grabbers that are running at 90 frames/sec, looking at the sameimage. One field of view of one image is at a known angle to the fieldof view of the other image, which allows calculation of the range databy comparison of the images, thereby allowing determination of theCartesian location data for the carcass area of interest by theprocessor in the system. The vision-based sensor detects location of atail bone 23 on the beef carcass 20 as the beef carcass moves on thecarcass rail 90 to a position adjacent the robot-based carcassprocessing device 50. The location of the tail bone is expressed incoordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z locations). Using theprocessor in the vision-based sensor system, the tail bone location onthe supported beef carcass may be detected in Cartesian coordinates asthe supported beef carcass moves along the carcass rail. Thesecoordinates of the tail bone location are sent by vision-based sensorsystem 88 in a signal to the controller, which then converts theCartesian coordinates of the tail bone location into coordinates usableby the robot-based carcass processing device 50. These coordinates maythen be used to control the directional axes for the robotic arm, Xp, Ypand Zp, and rotational axes for the robotic arm Ap (roll), Bp (pitch)and Cp (yaw). The controller may then send a signal to the robot-basedcarcass processing device 50 to move the blade 75 of the band saw 74 tothe detected location of the tail bone 23 of the supported beef carcassas it moves along the carcass rail, to commence a splitting cut at thedetected location.

The vision-based sensor system 88 may also detect an age-indicatingindicia 200 in the form of a stamp having a particular design providedon each supported beef carcass 20 as the beef carcass moves on thecarcass rail 90 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 8-9. Such stamps are used toindicate the age of the beef carcass 20 to be processed. Specifically,carcasses are separated into two or more separate groupings—a first typeof indicia/stamp particular to the industry denotes an animal that wasover thirty months in age (“OTM” cattle), while a second type of indiciadenotes an animal that was under thirty months in age (“UTM” cattle).Sanitizing/sterilization requirements in the industry differ whenprocessing OTM cattle as compared to UTM cattle. The present inventionenables the system to properly identify the age-indicating indicia 200on each carcass and initiate a sanitization procedure. While thevision-based sensor detects the location of the tail bone 23 on the beefcarcass 20 as the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail 90 to aposition adjacent the robot-based carcass processing device 50, it alsodetects the age-indicating indicia 200 provided on the carcass. Thelocation of each age-indicating indicia 200 may vary on the carcass, andthe age-indicating indicia is further processed to identify the type ofstamp (and more specifically, whether the carcass is OTM or UTM) using apattern recognition procedure (FIG. 9). Once the type of stamp isidentified, the controller sends a signal to the carcass processingdevice 50 to execute the proper sanitation procedures (relative towhether the carcass is OTM or UTM) on its components with a sanitationdevice at a desired sanitation location. Such sanitation device may beaccessible by the controller.

The sanitation procedure may be accomplished in a number of ways beforeand/or after the carcass having the age-indicating indicia is split. Inone embodiment, sanitation is performed on the carcass processing device50 (and more specifically, the robotic arm 52 and band saw 74) throughspray nozzles 210 directly affixed on or within the band saw 74components itself (FIGS. 1 and 7). When the vision-based sensor system88 confirms the proper age-indicating indicia 200 on a carcass 20 (FIG.2), arm 52 moves the saw to a desired sanitation location, such as washcabinet 220, and the spray nozzles 210 activate, spraying the saw 74 androbotic arm 52 directly with the required sterilizing liquids (FIGS. 1and 7).

In the alternative, wash cabinet 220 may contain all the necessary spraynozzles 210 and sterilizing liquids meant for cleaning the band saw 74and preparing it for its next cut cycle. When the vision-based sensor 88confirms the proper age-indicating indicia 200 on a carcass 20, therobotic arm 52 will move the band saw 74 into the wash cabinet 220, thenengage the sanitation procedure while the saw 74 remains inside thecabinet until the wash cycle is complete. The carcass processing device50 then removes the band saw 74 from the wash cabinet, now sterilizedand ready to make its next cut.

Operation of the system using the robot station of the present inventionmay be described as follows. Table 30 supporting robotic processingstation 50 is moved along rails 32 and indexed to an initial position(leftward as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2), with the robotic arm 52 supportingband saw 74 in an initial upward position. Beef carcass 20 supported bycarcass trolleys 92, with its tail bone 23 disposed at an upper end ofthe carcass, is moved continuously on the conveyor 90 in direction 45(rightward as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) to a starting position adjacentthe processing station 50 and saw 74. The beef carcass has its back sidefacing toward the processing station 50 and the front side facing awayfrom it. Table 30 then commences movement along rails 32 synchronouslywith supported beef carcasses 20 while the beef carcass moves onconveyor 90. Vision-based sensor 88 detects location of tail bone 23 onbeef carcass 20 as the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail, with thelocation being expressed in coordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Zlocations). Controller 80 receives the Cartesian coordinates of the tailbone location of the supported beef carcass, and converts them intocoordinates usable by the robot-based processing device 50. Thecontroller then sends a signal to the robot-based processing device 50to move the band saw and blade 75 to the detected location of the tailbone 23 as it moves along the carcass rail. Band saw 74 then commences asplit cut at the detected location of the tail bone downward through thecarcass backbone, as table 30 and saw 74 are moving alongside movingbeef carcass 20 on carcass rail 90. The current location of the tailbonecan be tracked by a position encoder monitoring the overhead conveyorspeed and position relative to the X axis plane, which positioninformation is supplied to controller 80 causing band saw 74 to movesynchronously in the X-direction with the carcass 20 moving along theconveyor. In the event that the carcass splitting is not accomplished bythe time table 30 reaches the end of rails 32, table 30 stops and saw 74continues to move horizontally by movement of arm 52 in the Xp directionrelative to base 54 on robotic processing station 50, along with anyextension in the Zp direction, in order to maintain synchronous movementwith the moving carcass 20.

As the saw 74 is moved by the robotic arm 52, it is counterbalanced bymass 106 to permit up, down and horizontal movement of the saw using aforce less than the weight of the splitting saw. During the splitting,the monitor 86 and controller 80 monitor torque of the servo motor 78driving band saw 74. If there is a change in current to and torque ofthe servo motor that indicates a break in band saw blade 75 during thesplitting operation, the controller causes robotic arm 52 and band saw74 to cease downward movement and/or the movement of table 30 andsupported beef carcass 20 along carcass rail 90. The robotic arm 52 thenwithdraws band saw 74 from the carcass. If there is a change in currentand torque of the servo motor that indicates a break of the supportingcable, the same action may be taken, or alternately robotic arm 52continues downward movement and complete the splitting cut, andsubsequently moves the saw to a safe home position.

If no band saw blade breakage is detected, the cutting continues untilthe beef carcass is fully split. The splitting cut may be made withoutthe use of an opposing support for the carcass, with the robotic arm 52imparting downward forces in the Y-direction that avoids excessive forcehorizontally in the Z-direction so that only the band saw contacts thecarcass as it is being split. Once the cut is complete, the saw motiondownward is stopped, and robotic arm 52 draws saw 74 away from thecarcass. Subsequently, processing station 50 with the robotic arm 52with saw 74 on table 30 will drive horizontally opposite direction 45(leftward as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) to its initial position for thenext carcass moving along conveyor 90. At the same time the robotic arm52 will move saw 74 upward into the starting position to engage thecarcass, and the operation will be repeated.

Alternatively, at the commencement of the splitting operation table 30may be held in a fixed position, and the initial splitting of carcass 20as it moves may employ horizontal movement of saw 74 by synchronizedmovement of robotic arm 52 in the Xp, Yp and Zp directions by therobotic processing station, using inverse kinematics with interpolationcontrol. When the robotic arm 52 reaches its maximum degree ofhorizontal Xp movement, table 30 may commence movement along rails 32synchronously with the carcass, while robotic arm 52 continues downwardYp movement of saw 74 through the carcass.

An embodiment of a robotic arm and controller of the present inventionmay take the form of a hardware embodiment that uses software (includingfirmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.). Furthermore, anembodiment may take the form of a computer program product on a tangiblecomputer-usable storage medium having computer-usable program codeembodied in the medium. A memory device or memory portion of controller80 can form the medium. Computer program code or firmware to carry outan embodiment of the present disclosure could also reside on optical ormagnetic storage media, especially while being transported or storedprior to or incident to the loading of the computer program code orfirmware into the controller. This computer program code or firmware canbe loaded, as an example, by connecting a computer system or externalcontroller to the programming interface.

It should be appreciated and understood that the present invention maybe embodied as systems, methods, apparatus, computer readable media,non-transitory computer readable media and/or computer program products.The present invention may take the form of an entirely hardwareembodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware,resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining softwareand hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a“circuit,” “module” or “system.” The present invention may take the formof a computer program product embodied in one or more computer readablemedium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

One or more computer readable medium(s) may be utilized, alone or incombination. The computer readable medium may be a computer readablestorage medium or a computer readable signal medium. A suitable computerreadable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, anelectronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, orsemiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combinationof the foregoing. Other examples of suitable computer readable storagemedium would include, without limitation, the following: an electricalconnection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, ahard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), anerasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), anoptical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), anoptical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitablecombination of the foregoing. A suitable computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination ofthe foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent invention may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional proceduralprogramming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may execute entirely on theuser's computing device (such as, a computer), partly on the user'scomputing device, as a stand-alone software package, partly on theuser's computing device and partly on a remote computing device orentirely on the remote computing device or server. In the latterscenario, the remote computing device may be connected to the user'scomputing device through any type of network, including a local areanetwork (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may bemade to an external computing device (for example, through the Internetusing an Internet Service Provider).

The methods of operation of the present invention may be implemented bycomputer program instructions. These computer program instructions maybe provided to a processor of a general purpose computing device (suchas, a computer), special purpose computing device, or other programmabledata processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that theinstructions, which execute via the processor of the computing device orother programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computing device, other programmabledata processing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computingdevice, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devicesto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computingdevice, other programmable apparatus or other devices to produce acomputer implemented process such that the instructions which execute onthe computing device or other programmable apparatus provide processesfor implementing the functions/acts specified in a flowchart and/orblock diagram block or blocks.

Although the depicted embodiment of the present invention is directed tothe splitting of beef carcasses, other types of carcasses may be split,and the methods described herein may be useful for splitting orotherwise processing hog and other animal carcasses.

Thus, the present invention provides a beef splitting method and systemwhereby a robot-based carcass processing device improves the accuracyand efficiency of the carcass splitting operation. The method and systemdetects the tail bone location on a supported beef carcass andautomatically moves the splitting saw to that location before commencingthe split. It also enables splitting of animal carcasses using arobot-based carcass processing device with a robotic arm that has amaximum load-carrying capacity less than the weight of the splittingsaw. The method and system can detect breakage of the splitting saw orbreakage of the support for the carcass during the splitting operation,and control further action of the system. In the case of splitting beefcarcasses using a band saw, there is no need for use of a support on theside of the carcass opposite the processing device.

While the present invention has been particularly described, inconjunction with a specific preferred embodiment, it is evident thatmany alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent tothose skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. It istherefore contemplated that the appended claims will embrace any suchalternatives, modifications and variations as falling within the truescope and spirit of the present invention.

Thus, having described the invention, what is claimed is:
 1. A method ofprocessing a suspended beef carcass as the carcass is moved along adefined path comprising: providing a carcass rail having a plurality oftrolleys spaced at desired intervals and movable along the carcass rail,each trolley capable of supporting a beef carcass; providing a beefcarcass supported by a carcass trolley; providing a robot-based carcassprocessing device having a robotic arm on which is mounted a saw capableof effecting a cutting operation on a beef carcass, robot-based carcassprocessing device being disposed adjacent the carcass rail; providing avision-based sensor system for detecting a location on the beef carcassas the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device, the location being expressed incoordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z locations); providing acontroller in communication with the carcass rail, the carcassprocessing device and the vision-based sensor system; moving thesupported beef carcass on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device; using the vision-based sensorsystem, detecting the location on the supported beef carcass inCartesian coordinates as the supported beef carcass moves along thecarcass rail; sending a signal to the controller with the Cartesiancoordinates of the detected location of the supported beef carcassmoving along the carcass rail; converting the Cartesian coordinates ofthe detected location of the supported beef carcass moving along thecarcass rail from the vision-based sensor system into coordinates usableby the robot-based carcass processing device; sending a signal from thecontroller to the robot-based carcass processing device to move thecarcass saw to the detected location of the supported beef carcass as itmoves along the carcass rail; commencing a cut at the detected locationof the supported beef carcass; and moving the saw to cut the supportedbeef carcass as it moves along the carcass rail.
 2. The method of claim1 wherein the robot-based carcass processing device is disposed on atable, the table moving synchronously with each supported beef carcasswhile the beef carcass is cut.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the sawis counterbalanced by a mass having a weight less than the weight of thesaw to permit movement of the saw by the robotic arm of the robot-basedcarcass processing device using a force less than the weight of the saw.4. The method of claim 1 wherein the beef carcass has a first side and asecond side, the beef carcass being supported on the carcass trolleywith the second side facing toward the robot-based carcass processingdevice and the first side facing away from the robot-based carcassprocessing device.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein each of the roboticarm and saw is driven by a servo motor, and further including monitoringtorque of one or both of the servo motors during cutting of thesupported beef carcass, detecting a change in torque that indicates abreak in a blade of the saw or in a support for the saw by measuringcurrent to the saw servo motor, and using the monitored torque to modifythe cutting operation on the supported beef carcass by ceasing movementof the robotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device and/orthe movement of the supported beef carcass along the carcass rail.
 6. Amethod of processing a suspended animal carcass as the carcass is movedalong a defined path comprising: providing a carcass rail having aplurality of carcass trolleys spaced at desired intervals and movablealong the carcass rail in a first direction, each carcass trolleycapable of supporting an animal carcass; providing an animal carcasssupported by a carcass trolley on the carcass rail; providing a saw railhaving a saw trolley capable of supporting a carcass saw, the sawtrolley being moveable along the saw rail in a second direction normalto the first direction; providing a carcass saw supported by the sawtrolley, the saw being counterbalanced on the saw trolley by a masshaving a weight less than the weight of the saw to permit movement ofthe saw by a force less than the weight of the saw; providing arobot-based carcass processing device having a robotic arm attached tothe saw, the robot-based carcass processing device being disposedadjacent the carcass rail, the robotic arm having a maximumload-carrying capacity less than the weight of the saw; using therobotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device, initiallypositioning the counterbalanced saw on the saw trolley at a firstposition away from the carcass rail; moving the supported carcass on thecarcass rail in the first direction to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device; using the robotic arm of therobot-based carcass processing device, moving the counterbalanced saw onthe saw trolley along the saw rail in the second direction toward thecarcass rail to a second position adjacent the supported carcass on thecarcass rail; using the robotic arm of the robot-based carcassprocessing device, moving the counterbalanced saw in a direction to cutthe supported carcass as it moves along the carcass rail; and using therobotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device, moving thecounterbalanced saw in the second direction away from the carcass railto return the saw to the first position, wherein the load on the roboticarm does not exceed the weight of the saw during all movement of thesaw.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein the robot-based carcass processingdevice is disposed on a table, the table moving synchronously with eachsupported carcass while the carcass is cut.
 8. The method of claim 6wherein the saw is a band saw.
 9. The method of claim 6 wherein thecarcass has a first side and a second side, the carcass being supportedon the carcass trolley with the second side facing toward therobot-based carcass processing device and the first side facing awayfrom the robot-based carcass processing device.
 10. The method of claim6 wherein the carcass is a beef carcass, and further including providinga vision-based sensor system for detecting a location on the beefcarcass as the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a positionadjacent the robot-based carcass processing device, detecting thelocation on the supported beef carcass as the supported beef carcassmoves along the carcass rail, and moving the carcass saw to the detectedlocation of the supported beef carcass as it moves along the carcassrail to commence cutting of the supported beef carcass.
 11. The methodof claim 6 wherein each of the robotic arm and saw is driven by a servomotor, and further including monitoring torque of one or both of theservo motors during cutting of the supported beef carcass, detecting achange in torque that indicates a break in a blade of the saw or in asupport for the saw by measuring current to the saw servo motor, andusing the monitored torque to modify the cutting operation on thesupported beef carcass by ceasing movement of the robotic arm of therobot-based carcass processing device and/or the movement of thesupported beef carcass along the carcass rail.
 12. A method ofprocessing a suspended animal carcass as the carcass is moved along adefined path comprising: providing a carcass rail having a plurality ofcarcass trolleys spaced at desired intervals and movable along thecarcass rail, each carcass trolley capable of supporting an animalcarcass; providing an animal carcass supported by a carcass trolley onthe carcass rail; providing a robot-based carcass processing devicehaving a robotic arm driven by a robotic arm servo motor on which ismounted a saw driven by a saw servo motor capable of effecting a cuttingoperation on a carcass, the robot-based carcass processing device beingdisposed adjacent the carcass rail; providing a monitor for torque ofone or both of the servo motors; moving the supported carcass on thecarcass rail to a position adjacent the robot-based carcass processingdevice; using the robotic arm of the robot-based carcass processingdevice, moving the servo motor-driven saw toward the carcass rail to cutthe supported carcass as it moves along the carcass rail; using themonitor, monitoring torque of one or both of the servo motors duringcutting of the supported carcass; and using the monitored torque tomodify the cutting operation on the supported carcass.
 13. The method ofclaim 12 wherein the saw is a band saw.
 14. The method of claim 13further including: using the monitor, detecting a change in torque ofthe band saw servo motor that indicates a break in a blade of the bandsaw during cutting of the supported carcass; and ceasing movement of therobotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device.
 15. The methodof claim 14 wherein the torque of the band saw servo motor is monitoredby measuring current to the band saw servo motor, and change in thetorque of the band saw servo motor that indicates a break in the bladeof the band saw is detected by a significant decrease in current to theband saw servo motor.
 16. The method of claim 14 further includingceasing movement of the supported carcass along the carcass rail. 17.The method of claim 13 wherein the robot-based carcass processing deviceis disposed on a table, the table moving synchronously with eachsupported carcasses while the carcass is cut, and further includingceasing movement of the table.
 18. The method of claim 12 wherein thesaw is counterbalanced by a mass having a weight less than the weight ofthe saw to permit movement of the saw by the robotic arm of therobot-based carcass processing device using a force less than the weightof the saw.
 19. The method of claim 18 further including detecting achange in torque of the robotic arm servo motor that indicates a breakin a support for the saw during cutting of the supported carcass, andmodifying operation of the robotic arm.
 20. The method of claim 19wherein the torque of the robotic arm servo motor is monitored bymeasuring current to the robotic arm servo motor, and change in thetorque of the robotic arm servo motor that indicates a break in thesupport for the saw is detected by a significant increase in current tothe robotic arm servo motor.
 21. The method of claim 12 wherein thecarcass is a beef carcass, and further including providing avision-based sensor system for detecting a location on the beef carcassas the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device, detecting the location on thesupported beef carcass as the supported beef carcass moves along thecarcass rail, and moving the band saw to the detected location of thesupported beef carcass as it moves along the carcass rail to commencecutting of the supported beef carcass.
 22. A method of processing asuspended carcass as the carcass is moved along a defined pathcomprising: providing a line having carcasses to be processed, the linemoving the carcasses horizontally past a processing station; providingat the processing station a robot-based carcass processing device havinga base and a robotic arm movable relative to the base with multiple axesof motion, the base being moveable horizontally and synchronously with acarcass moving on the line; providing a carcass processing tool mountedto the robotic arm, the carcass processing tool comprising a saw forcutting the carcass; providing a robotic controller in communicationwith robot-based carcass processing device for controlling and movingthe base horizontally and in communication with the robotic arm forcontrolling and moving the multiple axes of the robotic arm to move thecarcass processing tool in Cartesian space via inverse kinematics andhaving interpolation control over the multiple axes of the robotic arm;continuously moving a plurality of carcasses on the line sequentiallypast the processing station; while a selected carcass is passing theprocessing station, alternately: i) using the controller tosynchronously move the base of the robot-based carcass processing devicehorizontally along with the selected carcass while the carcassprocessing tool saw begins to move to cut the carcass, without therobotic arm moving horizontally relative to the base, and ii) using thecontroller to synchronously move the robotic arm of the robot-basedcarcass processing device horizontally relative to the base and alongwith the selected carcass while the carcass processing tool sawcontinues to move to complete cutting of the carcass, without the basemoving relative to the carcass.
 23. The method of claim 22 wherein thecarcass is a beef carcass and the saw is a band saw for cutting the beefcarcass.
 24. A system for processing a suspended beef or other animalcarcass as the carcass is moved along a defined path comprising: acarcass rail having a plurality of carcass trolleys spaced at desiredintervals and movable along the carcass rail in a first direction, eachcarcass trolley capable of supporting a beef or other animal carcass; asaw rail having a saw trolley capable of supporting a carcass saw, thesaw trolley being moveable along the saw rail in a second directionnormal to the first direction; a carcass saw comprising a band sawdriven by a servo motor and supported by the saw trolley, the band sawbeing counterbalanced on the saw trolley by a mass having a weight lessthan the weight of the band saw to permit movement of the saw by a forceless than the weight of the saw; a robot-based carcass processing devicehaving a robotic arm attached to the servo motor and band saw, therobot-based carcass processing device being disposed adjacent thecarcass rail, the robotic arm having a maximum load-carrying capacityless than the weight of the band saw; a torque monitor for the servomotor; a vision-based sensor for detecting a location on a beef carcassas the beef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device, the location being expressed incoordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z locations); and a controllerin communication with the carcass rail, the carcass processing device,the torque monitor and the vision-based sensor.
 25. A system forprocessing a suspended beef carcass as the carcass is moved along adefined path comprising: a robot-based carcass processing device havinga robotic arm on which is mounted a saw capable of effecting a cuttingoperation on the beef carcass, the robot-based carcass processing devicebeing disposed adjacent the beef carcass; a vision-based sensor systemfor detecting a location on the beef carcass, the location beingexpressed in coordinate data in Cartesian space (X, Y, Z locations); anda controller in communication with the carcass rail, the carcassprocessing device, and the vision-based sensor system, the controllerbeing capable of receiving the location on the beef carcass in Cartesiancoordinates from the vision-based sensor, converting the Cartesiancoordinates of the location into coordinates useable by the robot-basedcarcass processing device, sending a signal from the controller to therobot-based carcass processing device to move the carcass saw to thedetected location of the beef carcass, commencing a cut at the detectedlocation of the supported beef carcass, and moving the saw to cut thesupported beef carcass.
 26. The system of claim 25 wherein the saw is aband saw.
 27. The system of claim 25 wherein the saw is counterbalancedby a mass having a weight less than the weight of the saw to permitmovement of the saw by the robotic arm of the robot-based carcassprocessing device using a force less than the weight of the saw.
 28. Thesystem of claim 25 further including a carcass rail having a pluralityof carcass trolleys spaced at desired intervals and moveable along thecarcass rail, each carcass trolley capable of supporting the beefcarcass, and wherein: the beef carcass has a first side and a secondside; the carcass trolley is connected to the carcass rail and ismoveable along the carcass rail; and the beef carcass is suspended onthe carcass trolley, and is further supported on the carcass trolleywith the second side facing toward the robot-based carcass processingdevice and the first side facing away from the robot-based carcassprocessing device.
 29. The system of claim 25 wherein the saw is drivenby a servo motor, and further including a torque monitor for the servomotor for monitoring torque by measuring current to the servo motor todetect a break in the saw or in support for the saw during cutting ofthe supported beef carcass, the controller using the monitored torque tomodify the cutting operation on the supported beef carcass by ceasingmovement of the robotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing deviceand/or movement of the supported beef carcass along the carcass rail.30. A system for counterbalancing a saw for cutting a beef or otheranimal carcass comprising: a carcass rail having a plurality of carcasstrolleys spaced at desired intervals and moveable along the carcass railin a first direction, each carcass trolley capable of supporting ananimal carcass; a saw rail having a saw trolley capable of supporting acarcass saw, the saw trolley being moveable along the saw rail in asecond direction normal to the first direction; a carcass saw supportedby the saw trolley, the saw being driven by a servo motor, the saw alsobeing counterbalanced on the saw trolley by a mass having a weight lessthan the weight of the saw to permit movement of the saw by a force lessthan the weight of the saw; and a robot-based carcass processing devicehaving a robotic arm attached to the saw, the robot-based carcassprocessing device being disposed adjacent the carcass rail, the roboticarm having a maximum load-carrying capacity less than the weight of thesaw and being capable of moving the counterbalanced saw in a directionto cut the supported carcass as it moves along the carcass rail, thenmoving the counterbalanced saw in the second direction away from thecarcass rail to return the saw to the first position.
 31. The system ofclaim 30 wherein the saw is a band saw.
 32. The system of claim 30wherein the carcass is a beef carcass, and further including avision-based sensor for detecting a location on the beef carcass as thebeef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device, the vision-based sensor detectingthe location on the supported beef carcass as the supported beef carcassmoves along the carcass rail, the robotic arm moving the carcass saw tothe detected location of the supported beef carcass as it moves alongthe carcass rail to commence cutting of the supported beef carcass. 33.The system of claim 30 wherein the saw is driven by a servo motor, andfurther including a torque monitor for the servo motor for monitoringtorque by measuring current to the servo motor to detect a break in thesaw or in support for the saw during cutting of the supported beefcarcass, the controller using the monitored torque to modify the cuttingoperation on the supported beef carcass by ceasing of movement of therobotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device and/or movementof the supported beef carcass along the carcass rail.
 34. A system forprocessing a suspended animal carcass as the carcass is moved along adefined path comprising: a carcass rail having a plurality of carcasstrolleys spaced at desired intervals and moveable along the carcassrail, each carcass trolley capable of supporting an animal carcass; ananimal carcass supported by a carcass trolley on the carcass rail; arobot-based carcass processing device having a robotic arm on which ismounted a servo motor and a saw driven by the servo motor capable ofeffecting a cutting operation on a carcass, the robot-based carcassprocessing device being disposed adjacent the carcass rail; and a torquemonitor for the servo motor capable of monitoring torque of the servomotor during cutting of the supported carcass, the torque monitorcommunicating the monitored torque to a controller to control operationof the servo motor during cutting of the supported carcass.
 35. Thesystem of claim 34 wherein the saw is a band saw.
 36. The system ofclaim 34 wherein the torque monitor is capable of detecting a change intorque of the servo motor that indicates a break in the saw duringcutting of the supported carcass, and communicating the change in torqueto the controller; and the controller is capable of ceasing movement ofthe robotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device.
 37. Thesystem of claim 36 wherein the torque monitor is capable of monitoringthe torque of the servo motor by measuring current to the servo motor,and detecting change in the torque of the servo motor that indicates abreak in the saw by a significant decrease in current to the servomotor.
 38. The system of claim 35 wherein the robot-based carcassprocessing device is disposed on a table, the table moving synchronouslywith each supported carcass while the carcass is cut, and the controlleris capable of ceasing movement of the table upon receipt of a monitoredtorque from the torque monitor.
 39. The system of claim 34 wherein thesaw is counterbalanced by a mass having a weight less than the weight ofthe saw to permit movement of the saw by the robotic arm of therobot-based carcass processing device using a force less than the weightof the saw.
 40. The system of claim 34 wherein the torque monitor iscapable of detecting a change in torque of the servo motor thatindicates a break in a support for the saw during cutting of thesupported carcass, and communicating this detected change to thecontroller, and the controller is capable of modifying operation of therobotic arm.
 41. The system of claim 40 wherein the torque monitor iscapable of monitoring the torque of the servo motor by measuring currentto the servo motor, and detecting change in the torque of the servomotor that indicates a break in the support for the saw by a significantincrease in current to the servo motor.
 42. The system of claim 34wherein the carcass is a beef carcass, and further including: avision-based sensor for detecting a location on the beef carcass as thebeef carcass moves on the carcass rail to a position adjacent therobot-based carcass processing device, detecting the location on thesupported beef carcass as the supported beef carcass moves along thecarcass rail; and a controller for moving the saw to the detectedlocation of the supported beef carcass as it moves along the carcassrail to commence cutting of the supported beef carcass.
 43. A system forprocessing a suspended carcass as the carcass is moved along a definedpath comprising: a line having carcasses to be processed, the linemoving the carcasses horizontally past a processing station; arobot-based carcass processing device at the processing station having abase and a robotic arm movable relative to the base with multiple axesof motion, the base being moveable horizontally and synchronously with acarcass moving on the line; a carcass processing tool mounted to therobotic arm; and a robotic controller in communication with robot-basedcarcass processing device for controlling and moving the basehorizontally and in communication with the robotic arm for controllingand moving the multiple axes of the robotic arm to move the carcassprocessing tool in Cartesian space via inverse kinematics and havinginterpolation control over the multiple axes of the robotic arm, whereinthe robotic controller is capable of effecting movement of therobot-based carcass processing device and the carcass processing tool toprocess a selected carcass, as the carcasses move continuously on theline sequentially past the processing station, alternately to: i)synchronously move the base of the robot-based carcass processing devicehorizontally along with the selected carcass while the carcassprocessing tool processes the carcass, without the robotic arm movinghorizontally relative to the base, and ii) synchronously move therobotic arm of the robot-based carcass processing device horizontallyrelative to the base and along with the selected carcass while thecarcass processes tool processes the carcass, without the base movingrelative to the carcass.